1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a clip for retaining adjacent plywood panels in a coplanar relationship and, more particularly, to a clip which enables a user to more easily mount adjacent panels together when surrounding structures limit available space.
2. Description of the Related Art
A roof is generally mounted to a dwelling structure by attaching panels, made from plywood, particle board, and the like, to a truss structure on an upper portion of the dwelling structure. The panels are preferably mounted to the truss in a planar relationship so that a set of shingles can be attached to an exterior surface of the panels, perhaps with an insulating member therebetween.
Because many of the panels tend to easily warp and bend, especially wood-based panels, it is known to provide one or more clips along the edges of adjacent panels which engage an edge of an adjacent panel and maintain the adjacent panels in a planar relationship. FIG. 1 shows an example of a prior art clip which illustrates this concept.
FIG. 1 shows a one-piece clip 10 which comprises a central transverse wall 12, an upper plane 14 of mounting tongues and a lower plane 16 of mounting tongues which extend orthogonally from upper and lower edges of the wall 12, respectively. The upper plane 14 of mounting tongues has a first tongue 18 with an aperture 19 and a second tongue 20 which typically is stamped from the aperture 19 and deformed 180 degrees with respect to the first tongue 18. The lower plane 16 of mounting tongues has a third tongue 22 with an aperture 23 and a fourth tongue 24 which is typically stamped from the aperture 23 and deformed 180 degrees with respect to the third tongue 22.
The clips 10 are typically used to interconnect sheets of plywood which are laid on a truss to make a smooth planar substrate adapted to receive insulation and shingles. An edge of a first plywood panel (not shown) is typically slid between the first and third tongues 18 and 22 after the plywood panel has been mounted to a truss. A second plywood panel (not shown) is then slid between the second and fourth tongues 20 and 24 mounted to the truss.
A disadvantage of the prior art clip is that it is difficult to maneuver large panels between the tongues 20 and 24 once the clip is mounted to a first panel mounted to the truss because the edge of the panel must be slid between the tongues 20, 24 as the tongues are lying co-planar with the roof. In addition, the prior art clips are not designed to accommodate specially-cut plywood sheets, especially sheets cut for specific corners and intersections of a tight or oblique nature.